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Honored Patients
Our Inspirations
Our 2011 Light The Night Honored Heroes are just a few of the many patients supported by LLS. Your participation in the Light The Night Walks will help this year's Honored Heroes and all blood cancer patients and survivors receive informational resources, support and financial aid in addition to giving them hope for a cure.
Arnie Levine was a self-proclaimed "Closet Cancer Case," afraid to share his diagnosis with friends and work colleagues about his cancer for fear it would negatively affect his professional career. In early 2000, Arnie started feeling low on energy and after going to several doctors, Arnie was ultimately given a diagnosis of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma high-grade stage 4 and low-grade stage 2. Despite a reoccurence of his low-grade lymphoma in 2004 and again in 2010, Arnie has stayed positive and believes he will be in remission for good this time.
Elizabeth Propst It is with great sadness that Elizabeth lost her battle with AML and passed away on July 18, 2011. She continues to live on in our hearts and minds as an Honored Hero. We extend our deepest sympathy to the Propst family and will continue to share her story and memory in order to bring awareness and ultimately help find a cure for blood cancers
Mindy Turk had a bone marrow stem cell transplant for Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in December of 1998. Her brother was an exact match. She has been in remission for 12 years and considers herself cured! During treatment she couldn't eat solid food, walk a few steps, or be around people. She received physical therapy to regain strength and fine motor skills which lead her back to her hobby of making jewelry. Mindy says, "I want to thank you for your help to save my life and make future strides in medical research and patient aid."
Emma Joly was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) on December 20, 2006 at the age of 3. She was an Early Rapid Responder and was in remission after her first treatment. She continued the treatment plan without many complications and completed all of her treatments in March 2009. This is the beginning of her third year off-therapy, and she has remained in remission. She is a very brave, kind-hearted, and smart little girl who celebrated her 8th birthday this year!
Taui Fernando was experiencing some weakness and unusual lack of energy shortly after her wedding. She went to the doctor for some routine tests and was diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). She and her husband moved to Hawaii to seek better treatment options. Taui was given Sprycel as a treatment for her cancer and that drug has put her into remission. The treatment that Taui is on was funded with the help of research dollars provided by the many supporters of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Today Taui is healthy, strong and currently working on her masters degree at the University of Hawaii. With out the treatment she is currently on, her leukemia would return. She is grateful to her loving husband Fleance for being her ?rock? during her CML journey.
Gail Slawson's biggest heart ache came in April of 2003 when her mom, Sheila Slawson, was diagnosed with (ALL). Eight months later in December of 2003, she passed away. Gail still miss her very much. Ironically, in February of 2010, while training for the Honolulu Triathlon, Gail began to have a strange ache in her left arm and occasional discomfort in her chest. She thought she had strained a muscle and pinched a nerve due to all the bike training. In April 2010 she was diagnosed with a 9 centimeter Non-Hodgkin lymphoma tumor in her chest. The tumor was beginning to press on her heart and was blocking the flow of blood to her left arm and head. Gail was admitted to the hospital to start chemotherapy. Each of her 6 hospital stays consisted of 6 days of 24 hours a day chemo. She spent a total of 36 days in the hospital receiving chemotherapy over a 5 month period. In September of 2010 Gail was officially declared in remission!
Wayne Lee was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in Septermber, 2009. Wayne was fortunate enough to have met a nurse who informed him about LLS.After he contacted LLS he learned about the patient support group and also began volunteering many hours to support the society.?Upon volunteering for LLS, I met the most wonderful group ofwho were willing to give so much so others could benefit. LLS is such a wonderful organization, & LLS does so much for the benefit of so many people.?
